British sports betting company Victor Chandler, set to expand into the South African market, revealed this week that it regarded the potential in this country as "huge".
But Victor Chandler, chairperson of the Victor Chandler International group, denied suggestions that with so much crime already in this country the last thing South Africa needed right now was a widespread gambling industry.
Chandler said, "We are not aiming at the bottom end of the market. It is people with disposable income, obviously people who have access to the internet and credit cards, that is the market. We are looking at mainly the middle class, those with money. We see ourselves as a form of entertainment.
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"We have to dip our toes in the water and see what the potential is. But we do believe it is huge there."
'Europe is already opening up' The move by the Victor Chandler organisation into South Africa reflects a widespread opening up of gambling, benefiting from the online facility.
"People are regulating, and this will happen in most countries," said Chandler. "Europe is already opening up.
"Why South Africa? We see a potential market, like Israel; places that are badly served at the moment. All our operations will be online, although we will also be opening a telephone betting office in time."
Chandler refused to speculate on the number of jobs such an organisation might create across South Africa.
"It will grow according to the demand. But key to that is the internet penetration within society as a whole.
'He lost his best horse in South Africa' Trust
"The UK market shows what is possible as that factor grows. A few years ago, nine percent had access to the internet, but now that figure is 60 percent. That has changed our business.
"The past 18 months have seen a huge change in internet selling. What people have had to adjust to (on the internet) is trusting people with their credit card details. The breakthrough has come in that respect in the past 18 months. And this growth has been worldwide, from China to Europe and America. The Americans were the first people who really trusted giving their credit card details to faceless organisations.
"We hope this business will grow similarly in South Africa but we have to put our services there and see what happens."
Chandler is based in Gibraltar and the group's operations include a sports book, poker rooms and a casino. Chandler said that the company would look at possible casino business in South Africa, but at the moment the focus is on the online gambling venture.
However, even Chandler admitted that South Africa was unlikely to become a target for his company alone.
"Since the US market closed, we have seen a lot of US players become a lot more competitive in market areas they had previously not touched. I am sure all the companies in our industry are looking at every territory worldwide."
Chandler hopes to come to South Africa in October, visiting Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town, as part of the company's fact-finding mission. But his most recent association with this country ended in tragedy.
He lost his best horse in South Africa when it caught pneumonia and died during the journey from Cape Town to Durban for the Durban Guineas race.
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This article was originally published on page 21 of Tribune on May 11, 2008
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